Package



April 6, 1937. G. K. s. FERGUSON PACKAGE Filed Aug 7, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 April 6, 1937. I G, K, s, FE GUSON 2,076,018

PACKAGE Filed Aug. 7, 19 34 2 Sheets- Sheet 2 Fzyud'aw- Patented Apr. 6.1937

UNITED STATES memes George K. S. Ferguson, Baltimore, Md., assignor to The Baltimore Paper Box Company, Baltimore, Md.

Application August 7, 1934, Serial No. 738,855

11 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in packages and more especially to a novel package designed for use in shipping young chickens and similar fowl.

In the past it has been a common practice in order to ventilate baby chick boxes to glue or fasten sticks of wood on the cover. These sticks as a rule are square and run the width of the package so that when one box is piled on theother the sticks hold the bottom of the box above away from the top of the box below. It is customary in shipment to tie or bundle three of these boxes together. These sticks are an added cost and an inconvenience to the hatcherymen.

There have been a number of methods put forth as to ways in which these sticks could be eliminated but as yet none of these methods have proved entirely satisfactory. One method is to" is the bottom of the box above. In ventilatingthe chick boxes it is necessary to arrange the ventilation openings to conform to the outside temperature at the time shipment is made. The ventilating openings are provided for at the factory where the boxes are made but the die-cut portions or slugs are not removed. They are allowed to remain in place so that the hatcheryman can remove as many as he deems advisable to allow for the proper escape of air but yet not allow a sumcient amount of air to escape to chill the chicks by the incoming cold air through the ventilating openings in the lower side of the box.

In devising my improved baby chick box I have reasoned that inasmuch as the box above is actually the top of the box below; so far as air movement is concerned, why is it not feasible to (as the wood sticks which are used when the old fashioned method of ventilating a chick box is employed are A thick) build a chick box which is actually deeper than the old fashioned box and provide for openings through the sides only of" the body of the box, the upper ones of said openings coinciding with the openings in the cover of the box. In this way the warm air rises until it strikes the inside of the bottom of the cover and moves sideways by displacement out of the openings which have been provided both in the body and in the cover of the box, whereas in the old fashioned method this same warm air rose until it struck the inside of the top of the cover, moved laterally until it escaped through the 5 ventilating openings of the box, again .rose until it struck the bottom of the box above where it move laterally by displacement.

In my construction the hatcherymen can still 10 regulate the amount of ventilation through the removing or not removing of the die-cut slugs from the ventilating openings at the top of the side of the body of the box and also at'the side of the lid on the box.

In bundling my improved boxes there is the adgantage of having the flat surface of the cover supporting the flat surface of the box above and naturallythereby the full strength of both the boxes is brought into play when two boxes or more 2 are piled or bundled. Naturally if the boxes were made square with the sides at right-angles to the bottom, if two of these boxes were piled side by side, the ventilating holes in the one box would be cut off by the side of the adjacent box. In 25 order to offset this I draw the sides inwardly toward the top 1 so that the top of the box in length and width is smaller than the bottom of the box. This fact also helps in the ventilation of the packagein warm weather when maximum 30 ventilation is necessary.

Provisions for ventilating openings in the body of the box will be wide and 1 /2" long whereas provislons for the ventilation in the cover of the box which will overlap or coincide with the 35 ventilating openings in the body of the box will be 1%" long and wide. It is apparent that it will be impossible to shove or force a slug 1%" by through a hole 1%" by A".

Complaints are constantly heard from hatch 40 erymen that they are continually shipping baby chicks in boxes to a box and bundling the boxes 3 to a bundle, and that while shipment is in transit some inquisitive person, not being satisfied to look at the baby chicks in the top of the I box through the holes which have been provided v again could only move laterally and would only by the hatcherymen to assure ventilation and yet not chill the chicks in cold weather shipment, will proceed to knock out the remaining slugs which have been left in the additional ventilating openings in the box so that the top of the package of the bundle of three is overly ventilated and haturally the chicks become chilled in transit and one third of the three hundred chicks shipped 55 may die, and the hatcherymen's chicks'are condamned.

By using my improved type of construction it would be impossible to tamper with the ventila-" 6 tion as it is set in the hatchery without going to a great deal of trouble. It is also my contention that by using this method of ventilation it will be possible to ventilate each one of the four cells in the box either from the ends of the box or the l sides of the box and drafts will be eliminated. There will be a more even discharge and a more natural flow of warm air out of the package, and obviously a more natural supply'of fresh air into the package and the package will not be afl'ected 1 as radically by changing conditions while in transit as the old type of package in which the air is allowed to rise through the ventilating holes in the top, where any draft or breeze can carry away the warm air between the top of the box and the bottom of the box and allow the warm air 30 package.

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the same taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view with the cover removed.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of a package made up from three of said boxes.

Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view of a detail.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a modification of the box in which a flat sheet is employed as a cover.

40 Fig. '7 isa vertical sectional view taken on the line 'I-l of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is'a top plan view of the modification with the cover'removed.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated 45 in Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive, 9 designates the body and In the cover of a box forming part of my package. The body and cover may be made of any suitable stiff material such as cardboard or the like. The bottom Ii is imperforate and the side walls-slope 50 upwardly and inwardly so that the finished box is of approximately pyramidal shape.

The top of the cover is also imperforate, but the cover has a perforate skirt i2 which flares downwardly so as to neatly fit the side walls of 65 the box.

Each side wall is preferably provided with a row of lower openings l 3 and a row of upper openings I4. The skirt of the lid also has openings i5 which register with the upper openings.

60 It iscustomary to die-cut the openings as best illustrated in Fig. 5, and at the time of manufacture the slugs or pieces which fill'the openings are left in place. Then when a hatcheryman uses a box, he will push out the required number of slugs to make the ventilating openings. In order, however, to preventinquisitive persons from punching out slugs which it is desired to keep in place, the openings IS in the cover are larger than 70 the openings H. Consequently, as illustrated in Fig. 5, after the cover is in place, one cannot push the slugs I through the openings H for the purpose offorming additional openings I 5.

The box is preferably provided with intersecting vertical partitions H for the purpose of dividing discharges, cooler air will enter through the openings i3.

For the purpose of cheape'ning the cost of the package, the boxes may be so designed that only one cover need be used, and this will be placed on the top box of the package. In this connection it will be observed, in Figs. 6 to 8 inclusive, that the upper portion of each side wall i9 is provided with an inwardly extending fiap or tongue 20 forming shelves resting on the vertical partitions 2i (Fig. 8). Consequently, when the boxes are placed in superposed relation, the bottom of the upper box will also form the top of a lower box. A flat sheet 22 can be placed on the top box of the package and its edges will be inserted beneath the flaps 20. Obviously, when a band i8, like that used in Fig. 4, is placed about a superposed series of these boxes, the band will not only prevent the boxes from shifting relative to one another, but will hold the lid 22 in place.

At the present time, a chick box sells for around i twelve cents and the cover is worth about four cents. It will therefore be apparent that the elimination of two covers from the package will eil'ect a saving of eight cents. Furthermore, this will lighten the construction and eflect a saving in postage, as the packages in knockdown condition or when filled with chicks are usually sent by parcel post.

' While I have disclosed what I now consider to be preferred embodiments of the invention in such manner that it may be readily understood by those skilled in the art, I am aware that changes may be made in the details disclosed without departing from the spirit of the invention as expressed in the claims.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A package for shipping young fowl or the like comprising superposed boxes, each having an imperforate bottom, means binding said boxes together, the side walls of each box sloping upwardly and inwardly and being provided with upper and lower ventilating openings, each box having a cover provided with a skirt having openings registering with the upper openings of the box.

2. A package for shipping young fowl or the like comprising superposed boxes, each having an imperforate'bottom, means binding 'said boxes together, the side walls of each box sloping upwardly and inwardly and being provided with upper and .lower ventilating openings, each box having a cover provided with a skirt having openings registering with the upper openings of the box, the openings in each cover being of larger area than the upper openings of the box with which it is.

associated.

3. A package for shipping young fowl or the like comprising superposed boxes, each having an imperforate bottom, means binding said boxes together, the side walls of each box sloping upwardly and inwardly and being provided with upper and lower ventilating openings, the upper portion of certain side walls of one of the boxes being provided with inwardly extending horizontal flaps formingshelves on which the box immediately above rests. I

4. A packag: for use in shipping young fowl comprising superposed boxes, each box being of approximately pyramidal shape and having an imperforate bottom, the side walls of each box being provided with upper and lower ventilating openings, means at the top of each box to prevent air from passing through the top of the box. and means for binding said boxes together.

5. A package for use in shipping young fowl comprising superposed boxes, each box being oi approximately pyramidal shape and having an imperforate bottom, the side walls of each box being provided with upper and lower ventilating openings, means at the top of each box to prevent air from passing through the top of the box, and means for binding said boxes. together, the

upper one of said boxes being provided with a skirt having openings registering with the upper openings of the side walls of that box.

6. In a chick box, a body having side walls provided with ventilating openings, and a lid for the body provided with a skirt having scored slugs registering with said openings.

7. A package for use in shipping young fowl comprising superposed boxes, each box being of approximately pyramidal shape and having an imperiorate bottomJthe side walls of each box being provided with upper and lower ventilating openings, means at the top of each box to prevent air from passing through the top of the box,

means for binding said boxes together, and vertical partitions arranged in each box and dividing the sameinto a number of cells, the partitions being of the same height as the box so that the partitions in a lower one of the boxes will function to support an upper box.

8. A package for shipping young fowl or the i like comprising superposed boxes, each having an imperforate bottom and a closed top, means binding said boxes together, the side walls of each box sloping upwardly and inwardly and being provided with unobstructed upper and lower ventilating openings, the bottom of all of the boxes being of substantially uniform size, whereby the bottom of an upper box overhangs the side walls of the box immediately below.

9. A package for use in shipping young fowl comprising superposed boxes, each box being oi approximately pyramidal shape and having an imperforate bottom. the side walls of web box being provided with upper and lower ventilating openings and the upper portion of certain side walls of the boxes below the top box being provided with horizontally extending flaps, said flops forming shelves carried by the side walls and on which certain of the boxes rest, a cover for the top one of the boxes, and means binding said boxes together.

10. In a chick box, an approximately pyramidal shaped box having side walls and an imperiorate bottom, the side walls being provided with upper and lower ventilating openings, and an approximately pyramidal shaped lid for the body con sisting of an imperforate top from which depends a skirt oyerlapping the upper portions of the side walls of the body, said skirt having apertures registering with the upper apertures in the side walls 01' the box.

11. In a chickbox. in combination a body portion having side walls and an imperiorate bottom, said walls having upper and. lower rows of ventilating openings. 9. cover portion having an imperforate top and pendant side walls forming a skirt designed to fit in telescopic relation over the side walls of said body portion, said skirt terminating above the lower openings of the side walls of the body portion and having openings therein registering with the upper openings'in the side walls of the body portion.

GEORGE K. S. FERGUSON. 

